Five Oreum in Namwon-eup — Walking Them as One Course with GYULI

Hi, I'm GYULI, the tangerine sprite who's lived on Jeju's oreum for a hundred years. I once told you about Mulyeongari Oreum, said to sit in Namwon-eup, Seogwipo — the mysterious oreum with a wetland tucked inside its crater. Some of you might remember that one. It turns out Namwon-eup is said to be home to more than just Mulyeongari Oreum — a cluster of other named oreum are said to sit close together in the same area. Today I want to introduce five of them together: Yeogunoribong, Jabaebong, Iseungak, Mecheo Oreum, and Seojungcheon Oreum. I'll be careful about confidently laying out each oreum's exact height, when it was formed, or any legend passed down about it. So instead of digging into the fine details of each oreum, I want to focus today on the experience of stringing them together and walking them as one course. One quick note before I start — Mecheo Oreum, one of these five, has a name that sounds a lot like Mecheowat Forest Trail, which I introduced earlier. I want to flag upfront that they're two different places. Mecheowat Forest Trail is a cypress-lined forest path, while Mecheo Oreum is said to be an oreum in its own right, known by its own name. I wanted to sort that out before getting into today's story, since the similar names can be easy to mix up.

Five oreum said to cluster together in Namwon-eup

Yeogunoribong, Jabaebong, Iseungak, Mecheo Oreum, and Seojungcheon Oreum are all said to sit somewhere in Namwon-eup, Seogwipo. All five are said to come up together on lists of named oreum in Jeju, though exactly how tall each one is or since when it's been called by that name is described a little differently depending on the source, so I can't confidently pin those details down here. What does come up consistently across accounts, though, is that the five oreum are said to sit relatively close together within the single area of Namwon-eup. Among them, Iseungak is also said to be called Iseungi Oreum, and its name tends to come up a bit more often than the others. Yeogunoribong and Jabaebong are said to be quieter oreum that keep to themselves, and since Seojungcheon Oreum's name includes the character for stream, I find myself guessing it might sit close to a waterway — though that's just my own guess, not something I've confirmed, so if you're curious it's worth looking up the latest information before visiting. Since all five are grouped together under the name Namwon-eup, they're often introduced as a course to visit together rather than as single destinations to seek out one at a time.

More than any single oreum, it's the course that's the fun part

There are many ways to travel through oreum, but in an area like Namwon-eup where several oreum cluster together, stringing them into one course rather than visiting each separately is said to be an option. Yeogunoribong, Jabaebong, Iseungak, Mecheo Oreum, and Seojungcheon Oreum, the five I'm introducing today, are also said to sometimes get mentioned as a course like this — climbing one oreum, coming back down, moving to the next, and then the next, building a day's itinerary that way. Stringing several oreum together like this is said to create a rhythm you don't get from visiting just one. The sound of your own breath on the climb, a short rest at the summit looking out over Namwon-eup, the ease of the walk while moving on to the next oreum — it's said that this flow itself, more than the shape or name of any single oreum, is what tends to stay with people. There's no rule that says you have to cover all five in one day, and picking just two or three based on your condition and time that day is said to be plenty. The mood of the course is also said to shift depending on the order you walk them in, so rather than one right answer, it's better to think of it as a course you can put together a little differently each time. Iseungak in particular, being a bit better known than the other four, is said to often serve as the start or finish of the course.

A few things worth knowing before you take on the course

If you're planning to string these five oreum into one course, a few things are worth knowing beforehand. Since the oreum are said to be scattered across different spots within Namwon-eup, moving between them by car and then walking each one from its own entrance is said to come up more often than walking the whole way on foot. The entrance location, trail condition, and available facilities are described a little differently for each oreum depending on the source, so it's worth checking the latest information for each one before you go. Since there are climbing and descending sections, comfortable walking shoes are said to be a must, and it's worth bringing water and a light snack too. Trail conditions and how overgrown the paths are can vary by season, and some people are said to bring long sleeves or insect repellent, especially in summer. One more note — Namwon-eup is also said to be home to Mulyeongari Oreum and Mecheowat Forest Trail, both of which I've introduced separately before, alongside the five oreum covered today. Mulyeongari Oreum is the oreum with a wetland inside its crater, and Mecheowat Forest Trail is the cypress-lined forest path — both have a different feel from today's course, but if you're planning a trip around Namwon-eup, folding those two into your itinerary as well is said to be an option. Today, though, I wanted to focus on the story of this five-oreum course, so for Mulyeongari Oreum and Mecheowat Forest Trail, I'd point you back to those earlier stories.

🍊 Real Photos, via GYULI